A very creative "folk" legend based on religious sources dates the naming of Basilan to about 600 BCE, during the reign of Zedekiah, King of Judah. A group of Israelites (descendants of the tribe of Yehosef Joseph) left Jerusalem for a New Promised Land. They were led by Lehi, (of the tribe of Manasseh), a visionary man, his wife Sariah, and their four (4) sons, Laman, Lemuel, Nephi, and Sam. Lehi invited his cousin, Ishmael, an Arab (of the tribe of Ephraim), his wife, his sons and their wives, and their daughters, who were taken as wives by Lehi's sons. With them also came Zoram, the Keeper of the Records of the Jews (The Torah, the five books of Moses). They traveled south across the Arabian Peninsula where they wandered for eight years, passing Jebel Musa or Mountain of Moses, the mountain where Moses supposedly received God's laws, reaching Salalah present day Oman. The Lehites named Salalah, Land Bountiful.
With the ability to make tools, they used these tools to cut timber from the mountains and built a ship in quest of the Promised Land. About 597 BCE crossed the Arabian Sea, passing the Indian Ocean, Moroni Island, towards the Malacca Straits, passing thru an island they called YahVah (Java), another island they called Samathar (Sam entreated his brethren here - Sumatra), a place they called Jah Karath (covenant with Jehovah - Jakarta), Singapore, the South China Sea, and reached a group of islands they called Sinim (Sulu Archipelago). They stopped over in these islands for replenishments. They called an island, Sug (South Island - Sulu, translated into Spanish as Jolo).
Going northward, they reached a beautiful island full of precious iron ores, fruits and timber. Lehi discovered a gentle and beautiful people thriving on the island. They called the Island, Basalalah (New Land Bountiful - Basilan). Lehi's group were welcomed and feted like royalty by the natives. Lehi was crowned Raha Lahay, and his sons, Lakan Napay, Lakan Laman, Lakan Lamah (Lemuel, a weakling), etc. All the men were crowned lakans (princes) and the women were crowned dayang-dayang (princesses). Lehi named the different parts of the Islands, thus: Southern part, Lehi called it Mal-yusuf (Maluso) in honor of his ancestor and son, Joseph; the Northern part, Pa Sara-ngan, (the way to Sarah's name (or place) - Pasangan, now Isabela). in honor of his wife Sarah; eastern part, Laman-tian (Laman's desire - Lamitan); a small island, Mal-Lemuel (Island of the weak Lemuel - Malamawi); a hilly portion, Panun-Zoram, in honor of Zoram (Picnic Grove - Panunsulan); a small town, Maha-Lahay (royal town of Raha Lahay - Mahayahay). The Lehites taught the natives how to extract ore and form metals to make tools, weapons, and jewelry. They also taught them the ways of peace, love, and harmony. They taught them how to weave cloth, how to preserve food, and build houses made of lumber, bamboo and nipa thatches, according to the ways of the Israelites.
They sailed on northward and named places and islands: Samboangan (in honor of Sam -Zamboanga), Sugbu (island north of Sug - Cebu); further north, Nasugbu (Batangas, north of Sugbu). They traveled westward towards the silence of many waters and called it Mifratz Lamon(Lamon Bay) and a calm sea (Pacific ocean); naming places as they go. The sons of Lehi named an island after their father, Lehi-teh (Lehi's island of the east - Leyte). Lehi named an adjacent island after his son, Sam, Sam Arkath (Sam, the beloved son - Samar). They named a small island Lima Zohar (weak supply of water, like Lemuel - Limasawa). Finally, the rich south-central coast of Mindanao island was called Sara-ngan (Sarah's name (or place) - Sarangani). Looking back at the beautiful islands of beautiful people, Lehi named the whole group of islands, Sinim (Pearl Islands - now reduced to the island group west of Basilan - Pilas - nativized from the Spanish "Perlas", the island group where the legendary native chieftain who defeated Ferdinand Magellan, Lapu-Lapu, is widely believed to be buried).
[edit] Pre-Hispanic Taguima
Basilan's earliest settlers was traditionally believed to be the Orang Dampuans originating from the islands of Eastern Indonesia, who are supposed to be the ancestors of the native Yakans. They are variously called the Orang Dyaks or the Tagihamas.
The Yakans, an inland pagan tribe, inhabited the Sulu Archipelago together with the indigenous Sama and Bajau before the Malayan Tausug from Sumatra and Borneo gained control of the area starting 300BCE-200BCE.[1].
Historians have scant knowledge of the pre-Spanish history of the indigenous Yakans simply because they have had little contact with other ethnic groups. Basilan's nearness to Borneo led to the theory that the Yakan originated from the Dyak. Although it is fairly safe to say that Basilan's history is related to that of the Sulu archipelago, it is by no means right to suppose that Basilan's first inhabitants came from Indonesia.
Recent anthropological and archaeological findings actually point to a reverse pattern of human migration and subsequent habitation. Originating from the region we know now as Southern China, some of the earliest human communities constituting the northernmost dark-skinned branches of the first or "southern" wave of human migrations from Africa, ancestors of modern-day Aetas and Negritos, were forced to leave the area in the wake of the arrival of the second wave of human migrants out of Africa, the "northern" wave or the ancestors of present-day Chinese aboriginal tribes. These short, dark-skinned and kinky-haired humans first found a home in the relatively isolated island of Taiwan.
At about 5,000BCE, just as Earth was about to exit its most recent ice age, a virtual explosion of human migration again ensued, this time from Taiwan, traveling via land-bridges to Luzon in the Philippines, and farther south. The first wave of these Austronesian migrants proceeded to populate the greater and lesser Sunda islands of Borneo, Sulawesi, the Moluccas, Java and Sumatra, now generally referred to as the Malay Archipelago, therefore making up the Malayo-Austronesian branch of this population grouping. A more recent sub-branch traveled across the Indian Ocean and populated the previously uninhabited island of Madagascar off the southeast coast of Africa. The second wave of Austronesians traveled eastwards from the Philippines, populating the Western Pacific islands of Papua, Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia.
Most of these negrito populations were eventually assimilated through inter-racial mingling with Thai-Khmer populations moving southwards from the Thai-Indochinese peninsula, the result being the Malayan race that now inhabit Malaysia, Indonesia (Nusantara), and the Philippines. The negrito populations of the western Pacific however, far removed from racial inter-mingling from the Asian mainland, eventually evolved into the present populations of Papua, Fiji, Hawai'i and other Pacific island groups.
If Basilan itself was previously inhabited by these ancient Negrito peoples, they were eventually driven farther south by the arrival at around 1500BCE-500BCE of the same ancient Chinese-Annamese aboriginals who drove away the Negritos from Southern China in the first place. Philippine historians from the Spanish-era mistakenly called these new arrivals "Indones" (Indonesians) even as they exhibited physical features closer to the ancient Chinese rather than modern-day Indonesians. The lighter-skinned and relatively slimmer and taller "Indones" communities eventually became the ancestors of modern-day indigenous Philippine tribes populating nearly the entire Philippine archipelago, the modern-day Lumads of the Philippines, and it is likewise believed that the Yakans were descended from this same population grouping.
The general migratory pattern therefore of the original inhabitants of the Philippine Archipelago follows a north-south path, contrary to widely held beliefs based primarily on the more recent cultural counter-migration which started from 300BCE-200BCE.
This third and final wave of human migration came from the general direction of the Malay Archipelago, albeit this time by full-fledged Malays (Thai-Khmer-Negrito) who then promptly displaced indigenous tribes from their coastal communities, driving the Indones or the Lumads farther inland, or south and east into the eastern Indonesian islands. This particular migratory pattern is seen in the pre-Hispanic legends of the 10 Datus from Borneo colonizing the island of Panay, where a much older "Ati" (Aeta or Negrito) kingdom graciously met them at their arrival. The migration of Malays into the Philippines was accelerated by the development of the ancient thalassocratic empires of the Malayo-Indian Sri Vijaya (from whom the name of the Visayas islands are derived) and the Javanese Majapahit in the 12th-14th centuries.
The same pattern of initial habitation and subsequent displacement by newer arrivals is clearly seen in the case of Basilan, where the slim, tall, aquiline-nosed, and slit-eyed Lumad (Yakan) communities were driven far inland and towards the eastern and northeastern coasts of the island by the shorter, stockier and darker-skinned Malays (Tausugs) who proceeded to occupy the island's western and northwestern coasts. (The same pattern was repeated at the arrival of the Spanish and the Christian Malay "Indios" from the Visayas and Luzon who were considerably taller and lighter-skinned than the Muslim Malay "Moros", removing the latter to the island's southeast enclave that they now dominate.)
Owing to the fact that the Philippine archipelago was successively populated by two waves of negrito and ancient Chinese peoples before the rest of the Malay Archipelago and the western Pacific were, it is widely presumed therefore that instead of the Yakans having descended from eastern Indonesian Dyaks, the more logical conclusion would be that these eastern Indonesian Dyaks were remnants of the "Indones" tribes fleeing from the Malays, some of whom may even have been descended from the Yakan themselves.
[edit] Yakan Karajaan of Kumalarang
Records of pre-Hispanic Philippines gleaned from the extensive archives of China's Imperial courts mentions a "Kingdom of Kumalarang" located in one of the southern islands of Ma-yi (the Chinese name for the Philippine archipelago), whose King sent regular tribute to the Chinese emperor through Chinese traders who frequented the place in the 13th to 14th centuries. Local historians attribute this long lost kingdom to modern-day Kumalarang (now reduced to a Barangay) located along the northwestern coast of Basilan island.
Specifically, according to the Ta Min Hui Tien (Great Ming compendium of laws), a report gleaned from the records of Tehchow, Shantung, China (archived and researched in the years 1673, 1788 and 1935): 3 months after the death of Paduka Batara (the Tausug potentate who visited the Chinese Emperor Yung Lo and died on October 23, 1417), a High Court Mandarin, Chan Chien, was ordered to sail to Kumalarang (Chinese texts refer to "Kumalalang"), a vassal state of the Sulu Sultanate located on the northwestern coast of Taguima (Basilan Is.).
Chan Chien was received by Lakan Ipentun (Ch. ref. "Kanlai Ipentun"), presumably a Yakan Prince, who ruled the Kingdom as a vassal to the Sultan of Sulu. The Mandarin official stayed in Kumalarang for 2 years before returning to China.
He was accompanied by Lakan Ipentun and an entourage of several hundred, composed of his immediate family, minor chieftains (datus), and servants. They were finally given an audience with the Chinese Emperor on November 16, 1420 where he formally asked the latter to proclaim him as a recognized sovereign and vassal to the Dragon Throne.
Lakan Ipentun wrote a missive to the Chinese Emperor on December 28, 1420, complaining about the time it took for the Chinese Emperor to act on his request. The Chinese Emperor received the petition and finally granted Lakan Ipentun with the title of "wang" (king). After his request was granted, a satisfied Lakan Ipentun, along with his entire retinue, started for home.
On May 27, 1421, however, unaccustomed to the cold climate of the preceding winter and due to his advancing age, Lakan Ipentun died in Fujian, China, just as they were about to embark on Chinese junks that would have brought them home. His funeral was supervised by Yang Shan, administrator of the temples, and was likewise honored by a eulogy sent by the Chinese Emperor which extolled his virtues of "determination and serenity". His son, Lapi, was then proclaimed as rightful successor to the just bestowed title of "wang". Lapi sent one of his father's most trusted officials, Batikisan, to petition for an audience with the Chinese Emperor where he presented a "memorial" in gold plaque on November 3, 1424.
The party, with its newly proclaimed King, eventually returned to Kumalarang, and almost just as promptly faded from the historical records of the period.
[edit] Spanish Era
The first Europeans to ever document Basilan were the remainder of the ill-fated Ferdinand Magellan expedition, led by Juan Sebastian Elcano, and extensively documented by Italian scholar Antonio Pigafetta in the later part of 1521. Fresh from the debacle in Mactan, and after having their numbers reduced from 254 to less than a hundred scurvy-ridden sailors, the Spanish party scoured the area of the Sulu Archipelago for a route to the Moluccas (Spice Islands). After passing reefs and bountiful seaweeds, they came to an archipelago, the main islands Pigafetta recorded as "the islands of Zolo and Taghima (Sulu and Basilan) near which pearls are found". Food and water were difficult to come by in this episode of their voyage, however, so they eventually returned to Mindanao. The expedition eventually found its way to the Moluccas and then finally returned to Spain. They were the first Europeans to circumnavigate the world. Only 18 of them survived the long voyage and made it back to Spain.
Upon the return of Adelantado Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, and the establishment of the Spanish colonial government first in Cebu, then in Iloilo and finally in Manila, the island of Basilan was gradually colonized and settled, inducted as a Spanish possession as early as 1636, and eventually formally organized as the 6th District of the Police-Military Government of Mindanao by 1863.
[edit] Colonization & the Jesuit "reducciones"
The legendary Sultan Kudarat of Maguindanao maintained lucrative trade routes between his mainland kingdom and the Sulu Archipelago through a base situated in Lamitan. The Maguindanaos then called the island "Matangal" after the highest visible peak from the Celebes Sea. This base served as a staging ground for much of Sultan Kudarat's offensives against the Spanish until the Spaniards under the command of Governor General Sebastián Hurtado de Corcuera crushed it in 1637, just one year after the Spanish Fort in nearby Zamboanga was established. Spanish reports of the battle listed an Apuh Menggah, and Apuh Dagang and Apuh Batalan as the main Yakan Chieftains leading the local resistance at that time, all of whom were roundly defeated, prompting a significant number of their followers to move farther inland and southwards.
The proselytization of Basilan started in earnest, however, when Fr. Francisco Lado, a Jesuit, established the first Catholic mission, in an area called Pasangen by the native Yakans. "Pasangen" is a Yakan term for "commune", "town" or "a place where people visit or stay". This coastal area, however, was already predominantly populated by Tausug and Samal settlers when the Spanish came, and therefore was likewise locally called a "pagpasalan" or "settlement area". The Jesuit missionaries from Zamboanga arrived on the same year that the removal of Sultan Kudarat's base from Lamitan was effected, and established themselves in Pasangen on the island's northwestern coast. They constructed the first wooden mission and palisade wall near the mouth of the Aguada River, and dedicated the Island to St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit order.
The Spaniards made several attempts to control Jolo, but failed to do so until 1876. Basilan, however, was a wholly different story. Catholic missionaries together with Spanish soldiers who inter-married into the native population were able to successfully penetrate Basilan. So much so that by 1654 there were about 1,000 Christian families living in the island. Foremost among these pioneering families is the extended Lazaro Clan who, together with its cadet branches, the Saavedra, Generalao, Suson, Pardo, Barrios and Guevarra families, owned most of the cultivated lands that was to form part of the growing Christian settlement.
Thus, the veil of Catholicism began to slowly spread across the island with the spirited drive of the militant Jesuits. With no spices or gold to enrich the Spanish king’s coffers, except for local taxes, the Jesuits refocused the Spanish government’s agenda and made religion the object of their expansion and conquest here.
In anticipation of an invasion from the Chinese pirate-warlord Koxinga, that was expected to devastate Manila, the Spanish authorities withdrew all stations in the south of the country to augment their forces holed up in Intramuros, temporarily freeing Zamboanga and Isabela from direct Spanish administration in 1663.
Governor Sabiniano Manrique de Lara signed a decree on May 6, 1662 ordering the military evacuation of the fort in Zamboanga, and of other Spanish colonies, including that of Ternate in the spice islands of the Moluccas. Upon receipt of these orders on June 17, 1662 the Spanish garrisons, along with a number of priests and their chosen local people started preparations for the eventual evacuation. The garrison were given orders to abandon the fort to the Christian Samas (progenitors of modern-day Chavacanos). Such a move was vigorously opposed by the Jesuits, though, particularly by Rev. Francisco Combes, SJ, even then, an acknowledged historian of Mindanao, but to no avail. The Zamboanga fort was finally abandoned sometime in April 1663 by the last remaining Spanish troops, they were evacuated and returned to Cavite to help defend Manila's Intramuros from a threatened invasion by Chinese pirate Koxinga, which never happened.
As fate will have it, the Chavacanos of Zamboanga and Pasangen, Jesuits included, will amazingly endure another fifty-six (56) years (1662-1718) of isolated existence and proliferation amidst the hostile threat and return of the Moro Pirates who overtook and destroyed the abandoned fort. In the face of renewed threats from the surrounding Moro kingdoms of the area, the beleaguered Christian native population of 6,000 including a number of Jesuit priests, moved their settlement farther inland towards the area of modern-day Tetuan, where a Jesuit mission dedicated to Saint Ignatius was built. The Jesuit mission in Basilan, too, held out, albeit having its population drastically reduced by the seemingly endless onslaught by hostile neighbors.
The Jesuits, belonging to the aggressive religious expansionists' Society of Jesus, who remained in Zamboanga were historically credited for petitioning Madrid for the reconstruction of the damaged fort in 1666, three years after the last Spanish soldiers vacated their walled post. Spanish Queen Regent Maria Anna issued a cedula to the effect, but orders were not carried out by the authorities in Manila. A second order to re-establish the Fort was issued in 1672, but Gov. Diego de Salcedo again failed to carry this out as well.
In the absence of Spanish Royal authorities the Jesuits formed a sort of Christian city-state, called "reductions" (Spanish Reducciones, Portuguese Reduções) in and around their 3-decade old Presidios both in Zamboanga and Basilan. These were societies set up according to an idealized theocratic model. The same type of communities were likewise established by the Jesuits throughout South America, but especially in present-day Brazil and Paraguay.
Although Koxinga died about a year after his veiled threat to invade Manila, which caused the recall of Spanish troops to defend it, there was no formal reason given as to why the Spanish government refrained from returning their troops to Zamboanga.
In January 17, 1673, an English freebooter, Capt. William Dampier reached Tictabun island off the Zamboanga coast. There he wrote down this account: "A little to the westward of the Keys (Tictabun island) we saw an abundance of coconut trees, therefore we sent our canoes, thinking to find inhabitants, but found none, no sign of any, but great tracks of wild hogs and great cattle, and close by the sea were ruins of an old fort. The walls thereof are of good height, built with stone and lime, and by the workmanship seemed to be Spaniard."
The year 1718 will change it all.
The Spanish royal authorities eventually returned in 1718. Both the Tetuan and Basilan missions, however, held out against all odds. Despite incessant attacks and raids by the Moros, the surviving Christian populations of both missions still numbered over 3,000 by the time the Spanish returned.
After having re-established lucrative trading agreements with the native kingdoms that dotted the area, nearby Zamboanga experienced a revival in its economy. The increasingly wealthy Spanish trading post in Zamboanga became an even more sought after prize for the Moro pirates of the era, so much so that the surrounding islands started to attract the attention of other foreign powers, and chief among these coveted islands was Basilan.
Hostilities resumed in the 18th century and this was triggered by the decision in 1718 by Gov. Gen Juan Antonio dela Torre Bustamante to reconstruct Real Fuerza de San José in Bagumbayan, Zamboanga. The fort completed in 1719 was renamed Real Fuerza del Pilar de Zaragosa (Fort Pilar is its popular name today). The rebuilt fort was inaugurated on 16 April by Don Fernando Bustillos Bustamante Rueda, senior maestro de campo of Zamboanga. Three years later in 1722, the Spaniards were launching another expedition against Jolo. Lead by Andres Garcia, the expedition failed miserably.
By then, Badar ud-Din, Sultan of Sulu, wo was keenly interested in developing commercial ties with Manila and China, approached the Spanish with a proposal of peace. According to the agreement they arrived at in 1726, the Spanish and Sulu were permitted to trade freely with each other and the Island of Basilan was ceded to Spain. However, in a series of raids on the Visayas, subjects of the Sultan broke the treaty which resulted in the renewal of large-scale hostilities by 1730. [1]In 1731, General Ignacio Iriberri lead a force of 1000 to Jolo and captured it after a lengthy siege. But the Spaniards left after a few days.
In order to strengthen the Spanish position in Zamboanga and the neighboring regions, three companies of native volunteers were organized in 1832. These natives together with the Spanish troops defended the town and the province from the sporadic attack by the Moros. (The Spaniards call the Sultan of Sulu's army as Moros, Spanish for "Moors", the word Moor was in turn derived from Morocco a North African country adjacent to Spain, and peopled by Muslims which conquered and ruled Spain for 800 years)
Half of the Zamboanga peninsula was made into a Corregimiento (district) de Zamboanga with its jurisdiction reaching as far as Sindangan to the north and the whole of Basilan island to the south, while the northern half of the peninsula belonged to the District of Misamis. In 1837, the government was changed to a Gobierno Militar. Zamboanga was made the capital of Mindanao throughout the Spanish regime, except the period between 1872 and 1875, when the government was at Cottabato.
[edit] Dutch Attack & the Jesuit expulsion
The Dutch East India Company bombarded Jolo in 1744 and attacked Basilan soon after, establishing a Dutch base which they called Port Holland in 1746. They were eventually repulsed by Tausug warriors, sailing from Sulu and led by a Tausug prince, Datu Bantilan. (The site of the short-lived Dutch encampment is still called Port Holland, a coastal barangay of Maluso town, to this very day.)
Towards the second part of the 18th century, pirate raids from Sulu increasingly harassed the Spanish settlement in nearby Zamboanga, usually using their heavily fortified base in Maluso as a staging ground for some of their more successful forays. The Tausug raids reached a fevered intensity by 1754. By this time, a flourishing kingdom of Yakans and Samals was established in the area of modern-day Lamitan City. Headed by a loose confederation of Datus (local tribal chieftains), called a Kadatuan, the Yakan Confederacy traded with the Yakan communities farther inland.
In the meantime, the Jesuits were expelled from Portugal, France, the Two Sicilies, Parma and the Spanish Empire in 1768. Jesuit missions were very controversial in Europe, especially in Spain and Portugal, where they were seen as interfering with the proper colonial enterprises of the royal governments. The Jesuits were often the only force standing between the natives and slavery. It is partly because the Jesuits protected the natives whom certain Spanish and Portuguese colonizers wanted to enslave that the Society of Jesus was eventually suppressed. The Recoletos de San Jose (Recollects) took over territories previously assigned to the Jesuits.
In 1755, contingent of 1,900 men led by captains Simeon Valdez and Pedro Gastambide was sent to Jolo to avenge for the raids by Sultan Muiz ud-Din. But were roundly defeated. In 1775, after Moro raid on Zamboanga, Capitan Vargas led a punitive expedition against Jolo but was repulsed.
Throughout this brief period, however, Catholic missionaries continued their avid proselytization, converting entire clans of Subanen, Samals, Yakans and Tausugs to Catholicism, adding to the growing Visayan populations brought in primarily from Cebu and Panay.
[edit] Tausug Karajaan of Maluso
Historical records about Basilan shifted then to the archives found in the Royal courts of the maritime power that is right next door - the Sulu Sultanate.
The sultanate of Sulu became a center of power in the 1700s, ruled over the island of Basilan nominally, and had little influence over the Yakan who were gradually driven far into the island's interior (Sherfan 1976:11; Haylaya 1980:43).
It is widely assumed that by this time, Kumalarang has either ceased to exist as a kingdom or was eventually broken up and its Yakan inhabitants forced to migrate emmasse towards the hinterlands. The Yakans, having retreated from any considerable direct contact with the invading Tausugs, have retained their ancient animist beliefs in large measure, only embracing Islam at a much later date.
Islam is said to have started in the Philippines in 1380 but some scholars believe that Islam spread in some areas of the archipelago during the early 1200s. Then and now, the inhabitants of the Sulu archipelago have been described as Muslims who have retained much of their pre-Islamic beliefs. Such folk-Islamic culture resulted from the fact that Islamic conversions were mostly undertaken not by full-time religious teachers but by Arab Muslim traders who traversed the Malacca-Borneo-Sulu-Luzon- Taiwan route (Sherfan 1976: 12-13).
By the early 1700s, the Sultan of Sulu had defeated the Sultan of Maguindanao, signaling the rise of the Sulu sultanate in southern Philippines, with Jolo as the seat of power. Some Yakan villages sent a yearly tribute to the Sultan.
The Royal Archives of the Sulu Sultanate records that Sultan Azim ud-Din I, son of Badar ud-Din, and who was known to the Spaniards and most Tausugs as Alimuddin, ruled from 1735 to 1748. He was dethroned, exiled, then returned as Sultan from 1764 to 1774. His father proclaimed him ruler of Tawi-Tawi in 1735. In 1736, in a bid to cement the Sultanate's control over the busy trade routes that criss-crossed the area, the new Sultan decided to return his court from Dungun (Tawi-Tawi) to the old capital at Bauang (Jolo), which was abandoned in 1638 when the Spanish armada under Gov. Gen. Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera attacked and occupied it until 1645.
However, distance from the powerful Datus at the court in Tawi-Tawi made relations between them more and more tenuous. These Datus grew increasingly hostile to Azim ud-Din I as the years progressed, having been seen as a friend of the Spanish. They hatched a plot that would eventually lead to Azim ud-Din's removal as Sultan in favor of his younger brother, who was known to Spanish officials and missionary priests as Pangiran Bantilan or Datu Bantilan. In 1748, Sultan Azim ud-Din was forced to leave Jolo for Taguima and then Zamboanga. His younger brother, famed and respected for repulsing a Dutch invading force in 1747, having been conferred his Royal name Muizz ud-Din, was then proclaimed sultan.
Still a strapping youth when he became a Sultan, Datu Bantilan ruled the Sultanate of Sulu for sixteen (16) violent though productive years (1748-1764), having vigorously promoted trade that linked Bauang (Jolo) with major trading ports straddling the Sulu Sea. He likewise launched several raids on the Spanish settlements in Zamboanga and the Visayas islands of Panay and Negros, and greatly profited from the slave-trade of captives taken from these raids which reached a fevered-pitch by 1754. He likewise repelled a Spanish attack consisting of some 1,900 soldiers sailing from Zamboanga.
In the meantime, Azim ud-Din, fearful that his enemies might seek him out even in exile, sailed off to Manila where he remained for sometime, relatively out of reach from his brother's lieutenants. His Manila sojourn included a few years of imprisonment at Fort Santiago, as well as an unconfirmed conversion to Catholicism.
To further strengthen his naval superiority in the Sulu Sea, several Tausug warriors were sent to establish a base on the northernmost island of the Sulu Archipelago, which until then was called Taguima, after the Tagihamas (descended from the Orang Dyaks and ancestors of the modern-day Yakans who are the acknowledged natives of the place). This base was built on the island's southwestern coast facing Sulu, an area already thickly populated by Tausug traders and fisherfolk. Maluso as it was called then, and is so to this day, was the same site where the young Datu Bantilan met and vanquished the Dutch, and razed their encampment at Port Holland, one year before he became Sultan.
This Tausug base became a vital jump-off point for raids on Zamboanga. As a major military naval base, Maluso was staffed with some of Sulu's best blade-smiths and boat-builders to see to it that the Sultan's raiders were properly equipped before any raid was launched. Slave-raids into the island's interior likewise commenced.
As these raids became more and more frequent, the native Yakans retreated farther and farther inland, away from the coasts which were periodically harried by Datu Bantilan's Tausug warriors and slave-raiders. The biggest and most advanced Yakan coastal settlement was located on the northeastern shores of Basilan, in Lamitan, and far from the usual routes of pirate raiders on their way to Zamboanga from Sulu and Maluso. The Yakans were understandably wary of the Tausugs who proceeded to occupy much of the lowlands of the island's southeast coast, and have remained hostile to the Tausug kingdom that eventually flourished in the area.
After several successful incursions on Zamboanga were known to originate from this new Tausug base, Spanish surveyors stationed in Zamboanga took note of this and recorded Datu Bantilan's settlement, which by then was conferred the formal recognition as a vassal kingdom of Sulu, the Karajaan of Maluso.
Datu Bantilan died in the middle of 1763. His son, Azim ud-Din II governed Sulu with his brother after the death of their father. By the end of that year, he had become, for all practical purposes, the Sultan.
Azim ud-Din, now an old man, finally returned to Jolo in 1764 after Manila fell to the British. In the same year, on June 8, he was formally reinstated to the throne by his British sponsors. In 1774, tired of affairs of state, he formally handed over the throne to his son Muhammad Israil. With the arrival of his uncle Azim ud-Din I from Manila in 1764, whom he received well, Azim ud-Din II left his followers for Parang. Azim ud-Din II returned in 1778 after his cousin's sudden death (which some claim was poisoned by Azim ud-Din II himself), and was promptly proclaimed Sultan and reigned until his death in 1791.
[edit]
In 1755, a contingent of 1,900 men led by captains Simeon Valdez and Pedro Gastambide was sent to Jolo to avenge for the raids by Sultan Muiz ud-Din. But were roundly defeated. In 1775, after a Moro raid on Zamboanga, Capitan Vargas led a punitive expedition against Jolo but was repulsed.
The second half of the 18th century saw a new player in the Sulu Zone. After occupying Manila from 1762-64, during the Thirty years war between Spain and England, the British withdrew south. There they established trading alliances between the Sulu Sultanate and the British East India Company. Spanish attacks on Jolo were now directed at weakening British trading interests in the south. In 1784, Aguilar conducted a series of unsuccessful assaults against Jolo and in 1796, Spanish Admiral Jose Alava was sent from Madrid with a powerful naval fleet to stop slave-raiding attacks coming from the Sulu Sea. British presence was signaled when in 1798, Fort Pilar in Zamboanga was bombarded by the British navy, which had established a base in Sulu. In 1803, the Lord Arthur Wellesley, governor-general of India, ordered Robert J. Farquhar to transfer trading and military operations to Balambangan island in Borneo. By 1805, the British had withdrawn its military from Sulu.
1815 saw the end of the galleon trade with Mexico as the wars of independence in the Americas was brewing. In 1821, administration of the Philippines fell directly under Madrid after Mexico had become independent. The Madrid government sought to end the “Moro threat.” In 1824, the Marina Sutil, a light and maneuverable armada under Capitan Alonso Morgado encountered the slave raiders in the Sulu Sea and successfully routed the pirates, thus effectively extending Spanish naval supremacy in an increasing area over the Sulu Sea. This naval victory was followed by many more throughout the rest of the 19th century, ultimately reducing the once-unchallenged Tausug navy to a shadow of its former self.
[edit] The French Blockade
By the 1840s, colonial interests other than Spanish focused over western Mindanao, particularly the territories under the Sulu sultanate. The British, French, Germans, and Americans all became interested in these rich islands.
In 1843, the French Foreign Minister François Guizot sent a fleet to Vietnam under Admiral Cécille and Captain Charner,[2] which started the French intervention in Vietnam. The move responded to the successes of the British in China in 1842, and France hoped to counterbalance these successes by accessing China from the south. The pretext however was to support British efforts in China, and to fight the persecution of French missionaries in Vietnam.[3] The fleet, accompanied by the diplomat Lagrene, tried to seize the island of Basilan in order to create a base similar to Hong Kong, but projects had to be abandoned following the strong opposition of Spain claiming the island was part of the Philippines.[4]
When the French under Admiral Cécille blockaded Basilan in 1844-45,[5] an island which they called Taguime, intent on establishing a network of naval stations to protect French trade in the area, the Spanish governor protested that Basilan had recognized Spain’s sovereignty just the year before, in February 1844. The French then forced the Basilan datus to sign a document affirming the “absolute independence of Basilan vis-a-vis Spain” on January 13, 1845 aboard the steamer Archimede.
On February 20, 1845, France forced the Sulu Sultan to formally cede Basilan Island to France in exchange for 100,000 piastres or 500,000 French francs. The French Admiral totally ignored Spanish protests. However, the inhabitants of Basilan who remained loyal to Spain, fought against the French for a year, forcing the French King, Louis Philippe, also a Bourbon, to ultimately decide against taking Basilan although the French Cabinet already approved the annexation, even allocating the budget for Basilan for that year.
France's claims on Basilan were based on a formal cession from the Sultan of Sulu as well as formal written agreement from the Basilan datus. These claims were eventually withdrawn by France, formalized in a proclamation dated August 5, 1845, turning over full sovereignty of the island to Spain. During the same year, a US survey mission studied the potentials of the Sulu archipelago, but American intervention did not start until 1899.
[edit] Fuerte de la Reina Isabella Segunda
After two centuries of incessant and unrelenting raids and counter-raids, the fortunes of the Spanish Empire in the Sulu Archipelago took a dramatic turn for the better in 1848, primarily due to three watershed events: the advent of Spain's steam-powered naval superiority over Sulu's outrigger-and-sail paraws; the fall of Sulu's Balangingi allies on Tungkil; and, the establishment of Fuerte Isabella Segunda or Fort Isabella Segunda on Basilan Island. These three benchmarks sparked off a series of events which, from 1848 on, saw Sulu's power wane until it was finally blighted and almost completely snuffed out on the eve of the American occupation.
To check the inroads of both the increasingly bloody Tausug pirate raids and the growing influence of Lamitan's Yakan kingdom, as well as to thwart any further attempt by other European powers to colonize Basilan (the Dutch in 1747 and the French in 1844) the Spanish commandery in Zamboanga City sent over an expeditionary force tasked at establishing Spanish fortifications on Basilan island, both to serve as an early beacon and defensive perimeter against the pirate parties, and as a trading post for Spanish interests on the island.
In 1845, Don Ramon Lobo, the Marine Chief of Zamboanga, accompanied Don Cayetano Suarez de Figueroa, District Governor of Zamboanga, to the coastal settlement of Pasangen. Wooden fortifications were initially erected on the settlement's highest point facing the narrow channel about 800 meters from the shore. The 200-year old Jesuit mission was situated half-way between the Fort and the shore. The fortification proved to be easily defensible as nearby Malamawi Island blocked direct attacks and raids from the sea. Later that same year, Gov. Narciso Claveria ordered the construction of a stone fort, following the plan of engineer Emilio Bernaldez submitted in 1844. Construction lasted four years.
By 1848, the stone fort was finished, replacing the wooden fortifications. In the meantime a sizeable and growing Christian settlement continued to flourish around the Recollect mission, re-dedicated since the expulsion of the Jesuits, to Sta. Isabel de Portugal(St. Elizabeth of Portugal). The Fort thus established was subsequently named in honor of Isabella II, Queen of Spain and the Indies, and was named Fuerte dela Reina Isabela Segunda. The military garrison was initially placed under the direct command of the Fuerza dela Nuestra Senora del Pilar de Zaragosa (Fort Pilar) in Zamboanga.
Nieto Aguilar (1894) describes the fort as “magnificent.” Situated 20 meters above sea level, the fortification overlooked the two entrances to the bay, formed by Basilan and Malamawi Island. To the fort’s east were the barracks. The fort had four bastions at the corner of its rectangular perimeter. It enclosed a well and had four structures for the corps of guards, the garrison personnel, the presidio, jail, artillery corps and the casa comandancia.
In the fort was the governor’s residence as well as that of his officials. It was also a naval station where the navy maintained small workshops for urgent repairs. It had a storehouse for coal near the shore. Total personnel: two officer, 50 men.
Outside the fort were built other structures, namely: a military infirmary, school, ayuntamiento (city hall), corps of engineers’ building, storehouses and dependencies of the naval station, barracks for the marine infantry, gunpowder storehouse, and the Jesuit church and convent.
On July 30, 1859, a royal decree was issued allowing the Jesuits to recover their Missions in Mindanao from the Recollects. The Jesuits finally returned to Basilan and Tetuan on 1862.
By 1863, Fort Isabela Segunda became the focal point of the 6th District of the Police-Military Government of Mindanao. And in 1879, the Spanish garrison built a "floating" Naval Hospital on shallows guarding the eastern entrance to the Isabela Channel.
The fort and naval hospital were demolished in 20th century, when they were reduced to rubble by American bombs during World War II. The Basilan provincial capitol presently occupies the site of the demolished fort. Recent site excavations yielded rusted cannonballs and other late 19th and early 20th century paraphernalia in caverns dug deep beneath the former Fort.
[edit] Fall of Maluso
In September 1581, Msgr. Domingo de Salazar, O.P., the first bishop of the islands, arrived in Manila. It was during his time and on his initiative that an assembly of sorts was convened in 1582 on the lines of a council, "to deal with matters concerning the furthering of the Faith and the justification of past and future conquests by Spain".
The fathers of the council were of the opinion that no valid claim could be laid to the conquest of the Philippines other than that based on the right to preach the gospel, with the qualifying clauses, mentioned above. But for this right to justify possession of territories, it was unnecessary to depend on any direct opposition of the natives to the preaching of the gospel, since the inferior or primitive organization of their government and of their laws as would hinder or thwart their conversion was, in itself, sufficient reason.
This theory of the Council of 1582 was unanimously accepted by the religious of the Philippines, including Bishop Salazar.
Stemming from this Council's resolutions, real Spanish authority spread over the islands hinged on the theory of "voluntary submission" or "free consent" from the natives. Such a consensual contract was institutionalized in the "cedula" imposed by the Spanish government on all its subjects in the islands.
There is also the free consent given in 1845 by the different chieftains of Basilan Island in Mindanao, who were contacted by the governor of Zamboanga upon instructions to that effect given him by the then Governor-General Narciso de Claveria. This free consent was construed as having been represented by the issuance of "cedulas" to residents of Basilan.
It is noteworthy though, that in a later communication to the central government in Spain, Governor Claveria corrected the earlier erroneous information that Dato Usuk and the people of the Maluso region, in the said island had given their consent. Governor Claveria made it clear that such had not been the case, so the government was to refrain from exercising any sovereignty over them. Such was the scrupulousness with which this matter of free consent was regarded by Spain. Even as late as 1881 the same criterion would be followed by the Spanish government.
The continuing difficulty posed by the Tausug Karajaan in Maluso to Spanish interests on Basilan exemplified by its willingness to enter into treaties and agreements with other European powers, however, forced the Spanish to rethink this policy of leaving Maluso essentially free from Spanish rule. To ensure the unassailability of Spain's claims over Basilan, a military-naval operation commenced to put an end to the enduring Maluso Kingdom.
From the newly established Fort of Isabella Segunda and the Spanish Naval headquarters also in Isabela, the Spanish forayed into the erstwhile Tausug dominated area of Maluso with a band of Spanish and local troops, attacked the Tausug base, now severely weakened by the absence of reinforcements from nearby Tungkil, and razing coastal Tausug and Samal towns along the way from Isabela. Upon the defeat of the remaining forces of the Maluso Karajaan in 1851, an army barracks was constructed beside a tree-lined plaza surrounded by a few houses. Finally, wooden fortifications enclosed what became known as the Maluso Poblacion, which during the American era was renamed the Maluso Townsite.
Most of the Tausug and Samal nobility established by the Sulu Sultanate withdrew from Maluso, preferring to return to Jolo and Tawi-Tawi. The majority of the Tausug and Samal settlers, however, opted to remain, even opening ultimately profitable trade relationships with both the Spanish and the Christian indios in Zamboanga and Isabela.
Spanish raids were likewise carried out farther south and towards the western tip of the island, thus effectively pacifying nearly all of the Tausug and Samal settlements along Basilan's western coasts.
By then, only the largely Yakan areas of Lamitan and the interior remained outside of Spanish control.
As the situation in the island's western half started to normalize, Christians and Tausugs likewise started a long-lasting socio-political and economic alliance, which when used against the Yakans, proved to be effective in advancing each other's interests for the next century. This Christian-Tausug alliance was only broken in 1988, when a Yakan was finally elected to the highest post in what became the Province of Basilan for the very first time.
[edit] Fall of Tungkil and the Treaty of 1851
In 1844, Gov. Gen. Narciso Claveria led yet another expedition against Jolo and in 1848 Claveria with powerful gunboats Magallanes, El Cano, and Reina de Castilla brought from Europe supervised the attack on Balangingi stronghold in Tungkil. The raid resulted in the capture of many Sama Balangingi and the exile of many to the tobacco fields of Cagayan Valley. However, the leader of the Sama, Paglima Taupan, was not captured. With the fall of the Balangingi, a powerful ally of the Sulu Sultanate was decimated, this started the downturn of the sultanate’s maritime sea power. In 1850, Gov.Gen. Juan Urbiztondo continued with Claveria’s campaign and successfully annihilated of the remaining Balangingi strongholds at Tungkil. However, a raid on Jolo that same year was a failure. On 28 February 1851, Urbiztondo launched another campaign against Jolo, destroying the whole town by fire and confiscating 112 pieces of artillery.
On April 30, 1851 a Treaty, otherwise known as the "Act of Incorporation into the Spanish Monarchy" was signed between the Spanish authorities and the Sultan of Sulu.
"A solemn declaration of incorporation and adhesion to the sovereignty of Her Catholic Majesty Isabella II, constitutional Queen of Spain, and of submission to the Supreme Government of the Nation, made by His High Excellency the Sultan of Sulu, Mohammed Pulalun, for himself, his heirs and his descendants, Datus Mohammed Buyuk, Muluk, Daniel Amil Bahar, Bandahala, Muluk Kahar, Amil Badar, Tumanggung, Juhan, Sanajahan, Na'ib, Mamancha and Sharif Mohammed Binsarin, in the name and the representation of the whole island of Sulu, to Colonel Jose Maria de Carlos y O'Doyle, politico-military governor of the Province of Zamboanga, the islands of Basilan, Pilas, Tonkil, and those adjacent thereto, as Plenipotentiary specially authorized by His Excellency Antonio de Urbiztondo, Marquis of Solana, Governor and Captain-General of the Philippine Islands."[2]
[edit] Conquest of Lamitan
Throughout most of the Spanish regime the advance of Spanish interests was cultivated chiefly in the area around Fort Isabela Segunda or Isabela. A few adventurous colonists from Zamboanga settled in Lamitan over the years, but the area was fairly isolated from Spanish military incursions from Isabela by impenetrable jungles. Even so, a few Christian settlers, mostly traders, lived in Lamitan.
The most common strand about Lamitan's name is relayed thus: "On the island's northeastern coastal plains, the bustling Yakan community was in the midst of a native festival when intrepid Spanish explorers from Zamboanga pulled ashore. When the visitors asked the astonished natives where they were, the Yakans replied that this was their "meeting place" or Lami-Lamihan, which when roughly translated, refers to merry-making or conference. The Spanish explorers recorded this as Lamitan, thus the name."
A more comprehensive study of Lamitan's etymology, however, points to a far less merry circumstance. In fact, studies point to the naming of Lamitan after a Kuta (Fort) built by the Maguindanao warlord Sultan Kudarat on Basilan's northeast coast, to be used as a way-station for attacks carried out against the Spanish in Zamboanga, as well as to guard the sea approach to the Maguindanao Kingdom of Kuta Bato (Cotabato) from the Spanish navy that roamed the area.
This fortified garrison eventually became the center of a bustling community of thousands as Yakan farmers, artisans and traders, attracted by the relative safety that the Maguindanao base offered against both Spanish and Tausug attacks. Trade between Basilan and the Mindanao mainland soon ensued, linking this thriving community with another merchant-settlement located along the southwestern coast of the realm of Sultan Kudarat's allies - the Maranaos - a coastal Barangay still called Ramitan to this day. Maranao traders from Ramitan were quartered within the walls of the Kuta, along with their Maguindanao hosts. The Yakans, who traded with the Maranao's thus regarded the Kuta as "the place where the merchants from Ramitan stayed". Eventually, the native Yakans, having difficulty in pronouncing the sound for "r", replaced it, by habit, with the sound for "l". Thus, the Fort was called "Kuta Lamitan" by the natives, and then after the razing of the Fort and the evacuation of the Maguindanao garrison, to simply - Lamitan.
Unlike the earlier Karajaan or Vassal Kingdom of Kumalarang, however, the Yakans of Lamitan, rejected Tausug suzerainty and systems of governance in their territories. They did not fully unite themselves under a single King or Lakan/Raha, choosing instead to consult clan elders or Datus/Chieftains in a loose confederation called a Kadatuan (similar to the Maranao's Pat a Pangampong Ku Ranao or Maranao Confederation), keeping away for the most part from the Tausug Karajaan of Maluso and the Spanish Reduccion of Isabela, and thus remaining fairly isolated from the pitched battles waged between the Sulu Sultanate and Spain throughout the 17th-19th centuries.
The Yakan therefore largely inhabited the island's eastern half and the interior, and almost by habit, remained hostile to lowlanders throughout the epic clash of civilizations that saw some of its bloodiest confrontations fought on the island. The Yakan likewise remained faithful to their traditional beliefs, a mix of animist customs with Hindu influences, with Islam having been confined for the most part to the higher classes. A significant number moved to Zamboanga during the Jesuit reduccion years (1663-1718), where they were assimilated into society as Christian converts.
In 1874, a fugitive from Cavite named Pedro Cuevas (born 1846) who was remanded to the San Ramon Penal Colony in Zamboanga, escaped the sprawling facility, and found himself hiding from his Spanish jailers in the Yakan enclave of Lamitan.
He stayed in Lamitan for some time, given refuge by Chavacano merchants who traded with the Yakans in the area. He arrived at an opportune time, as it turned out, for a particularly zealous Yakan chieftain named Datu Kalun (also spelled Kalung and Kalum) wanted to rid Lamitan of its small but growing Christian presence. The Christian community got wind of this plan, however, and Pedro Cuevas characteristically volunteered to lead the resistance composed of the Chavacanos and their Yakan converts and sympathizers. In the confrontation between the two groups, the Yakan Datu Kalun was subsequently slain and his supporters roundly defeated. Cuevas then adopted the name of Datu Kalun (Haylaya 1980:43), claiming for himself the vacated position of his defeated enemy. The rest of the Yakan clans were then forced to accept Cuevas as their sole leader soon after. He married one of the daughters of the defeated Yakan chieftain to further cement claims of nobility for himself and his heirs, converted her entire family to Catholicism, and instituted meaningful socio-political changes in the lives of the residents of Lamitan. Datu Kalun consolidated the Yakans, led battles against the slave-raiders from Jolo, and rid Basilan's eastern coast of pirates and marauders.
With his advanced knowledge of Spanish armaments and military tactics of the day, he commanded a group of Yakan warriors, by then converted to Christianity, as well as some Chavacano conscripts from nearby Zamboanga, and proceeded to subjugate the remaining Yakan tribal leaders in the interior by force of arms.
After having consolidated his power over the flourishing Yakan enclave, Don Pedro Cuevas, sent emissaries to the Spanish authorities in Isabela and Zamboanga. He was eventually recognized by the Spanish authorities, having formalized his position as leader of the Lamitan District of Basilan island organized finally and officially in 1886. The Spaniards now considered Cuevas/Datu Kalun an ally and promptly pardoned him for his earlier offenses.
[edit] The Fall of Jolo
After a series of less-than-successful attempts during the centuries of Spanish rule in the Philippines, Spanish forces captured the city of Jolo, the seat of the Sultan of Sulu, in 1876.
On that year, the Spanish launched a massive campaign to occupy Jolo. Spurred by the need to curb slave raiding once and for all and worried about the presence of other Western powers in the south (the British had established trading centers in Jolo by the 19th century and the French were offering to purchase Basilan Island from the cash strapped government in Madrid), the Spanish made a final bid to consolidate their rule in this southern frontier. On 21 February of that year, the Spaniards assembled the largest contingent against Jolo, consisting of 9,000 soldiers, in 11 transports, 11 gunboats, and 11 steamboats. Headed by Admiral Jose Malcampo captured Jolo and established a Spanish settlement with Capt. Pascual Cervera appointed to set up a garrison and serve as military governor; He served from March 1876 to December1876 followed by Brig.Gen. Jose Paulin (December 1876-April 1877), Col Carlos Martinez (Sept 1877-Feb 1880), Col. Rafael de Rivera (1880-1881), Col. Isidro G. Soto (1881-1882), Col. Eduardo Bremon, (1882), Col. Julian Parrrado (1882-1884), Col. Francisco Castilla (1884-1886), Col. Juan Arolas (1886-18930, Col. Caesar Mattos (1893), Gen. Venancio Hernandez (1893-1896) and Col. Luis Huerta (1896-1899).
The Spaniards were never secure in Jolo so by 1878 they had fortified Jolo with a perimeter wall and tower gates, built inner forts called Puerta Blockaus, Puerta España, and Puerta Alfonso XII; and two outer fortifications named Princesa de Asturias and Torre de la Reina. Troops , including a cavalry with its own lieutenant commander, were garrisoned within the protective confine of the walls. From Jolo, in 1880 Col. Rafael Gonzales de Rivera who was appointed the governor dispatched the 6th Regiment to Siasi and Bongao islands. The Spaniards were not secure in their stronghold because it would be sporadically attacked. On 22 July 1883, it is reported that three unnamed juramentado succeeded in penetrating the Jolo town plaza and killed three Spaniards.; The word “Ajuramentado” was coined by Spanish colonel Juan Arolas after witnessing several such acts while serving duty in Jolo garrison.
The fall of Jolo, and the subsequent occupation by Spanish forces of the Sultanate's principal town, ended all legitimate claims by the Sultanate of Sulu over Basilan Island. Yakan villages, located in the heavily-forested interiors, and situated far beyond any effective direct control by Spanish authorities have remained fairly isolated from the rest of the island, with its three main population centers, Isabela, Lamitan and Maluso firmly under Spanish administration.
[edit] Treaty of 1878 and the Philippine Revolution
The Spanish and the Sultan of Sulu signed the Spanish Treaty of Peace on July 22, 1878. The Spanish language version of the Treaty gave Spain complete sovereignty over the Sulu archipelago, this includes Basilan, while the Tausug version described a protectorate instead of an outright dependency.[6]
In 1895, the Sultan of Sulu sent one of his most accomplished generals, Datu Julkarnain, to regain control over Basilan, only to be defeated by the combined forces of the Spanish and their local ally, Datu Kalun. The ensuing peace encouraged more Christians to settle in Basilan.
By this time, the Katipunan (revolutionary organization) had gained enough momentum in Luzon and the Philippine War of Independence was engaged in 1896. In Mindanao, locals' resistance contributed greatly to the weakening of the Spanish colonizers. The Spanish campaigns against the "Moros" - a derogatory term used by the Spanish against the Muslim Filipinos - likewise caused heavy casualties and depleted Spanish resources (Haylaya 1980).
While Zamboanga and Sulu were the centers of Spanish-Muslim hostilities, Basilan's inhabitants remained fairly unaffected by the social upheavals. Still, the indigenous Yakans, together with the considerable Tausug, Samal and Bajau populations on the island were among those natives called Moros by the Spaniards (Jundam 1983:8-9).
An American paper on Mindanao, Basilan and Sulu at the end of the Spanish-American war contains the following report:
"At the end of the Spanish era, Basilan's garrison was reduced to 2 officers and 50 men stationed on the Fort of Isabella Segunda. However, Isabela, which was the Naval headquarters for the south was garrisoned by 30 marines 27 sailors in addition to ship's crews. There were two brigades of marine infantry in the Philippines, composed of 375 men and 18 officers. Most of this force, including the 18 war vessels in Philippine waters, were used at one time or another, for the suppression of Moro piracy. The naval expenditure in the later period of Spanish occupancy amounted to more than $2,500,000 per year. The total fighting force of the Moros at the close of the Spanish-American War appears to have been about 34,000 warriors. This total was made up of 19,000 in Mindanao, 10,000 in Sulu and about 5,000 on Basilan Island. The total Moro population of the Philippines was about 380,000. Due to the absence of birth statistics among Mohammedans, any population figure can only be an estimate. A considerable percentage of the population of Sulu was transient, moving from Sulu to Borneo according to their desires. The Yakans, a tribe of mountain Moros, many of whom are pagans. About 20,000 of them are found on the Island of Basilan, fifteen miles from Zamboanga. They are famous for the excellence of their outrigger canoes or vintas and they supply many of the other Moro tribes with these vessels."[3]
The Philippine Revolution against Spain seems to have made no impact in Basilan. However, when the United States defeated Spain in the Philippines, many Spaniards, including Spanish clergy evacuated the Philippines and on January 15, 1899 it already became necessary to call a plebiscite at Isabela to form some kind of Government in Basilan. This plebiscite appointed Don Ramon Larrachochea as Governor and Don Pedro Javier Cuevas (aka Datu Kalun) was made Mayor of Isabela.
On May 16, 1899 all the Spaniards in Basilan evacuated and left the island to Don Pedro Javier Cuevas, who was later elected Jefe Provisional by the town council.
This Provisional Government ruled and protected Basilan until the military representatives of the United States Government took formal possession of the island on December 8, 1899.
[edit] American Regime
By 1898, Basilan Island was administratively divided into three districts, the Spanish-controlled towns of Isabela and Lamitan, and the Tausug trading outpost in Maluso, which the Sulu Sultanate handed-over to Spain, subsequent to the razing and occupation of Jolo by the Spanish from 1876 up to 1899, formalized by the Treaty of 1878.
Spain ceded the Philippine islands to the United States in the Treaty of Paris which ended the Spanish-American War. Following the American occupation of the northern Philippine Islands during 1899, Spanish forces in Mindanao were cut off, and they retreated to the garrisons at Zamboanga and Jolo. American forces relieved the Spanish at Zamboanga on May 18, 1899, and at Jolo and Basilan in December 1899.[7]
[edit] American occupation
On December 8, 1899, American troops took over the Spanish garrison in Zamboanga, one of the last strongholds of the Filipino revolutionaries in Mindanao. By December 1899, the Americans led by Col. James S. Petit occupied the Spanish naval base of Isabela de Basilan. In Basilan, an increasingly old and sickly Datu Kalun (Pedro Cuevas) supported the new colonizers. Sovereignty over both Isabela and Lamitan then was effectively transferred from Spain to the Americans.
At that time, the Philippine-American War was raging in Luzon. So as not to spread out their forces, the Americans employed the classic divide-and-rule tactic. Maj. Gen. E.S. Otis, commander-in-chief of the US Forces, sent Gen. Bates to negotiate with the Sultan of Sulu. Known as the Bates treaty, the agreement provided for the exercise of American authority over the Sulu archipelago in exchange for the recognition of Muslim culture and religion.
The Bates Treaty of 1899 between Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram II and American Brigadier General John C. Bates, further acknowledged American administrative control over the Sulu Archipelago, including Basilan.
Initially Sultan Kiram was disappointed by the hand-over of control to the Americans and had expected to regain sovereignty over the Sulu archipelago after the defeat of the Spanish. Bates' main goal though, was to guarantee the Sultanate's neutrality in the Philippine-American War, and to establish order in Mindanao. After some negotiations, the Bates Treaty was signed.
This treaty was based on the earlier Spanish treaty, and it retained the translation discrepancy: the English version described a complete dependency, while the Tausug version described a protectorate. Although the Bates Treaty granted more powers to the Americans than the original Spanish treaty, the treaty was still criticized in America for granting too much autonomy to the Sultan. One particular clause, which recognized the Moro practice of slavery, also raised eyebrows in Washington, D.C. Bates later admitted that the treaty was merely a stop-gap measure, signed only to buy time until the war in the north was ended and more forces could be brought to bear in the south.[6]
The peace created by the Bates Treaty did not last, however. This became evident when the Muslims repudiated the Moro province, a politico-military government in Mindanao lasting from 1903 to 1914, and the Moro Rebellion soon broke out. It is important to note that barely two months before the creation of the Moro province, the American colonial government declared and classified all unoccupied lands as public lands. Immediately after the declaration, American investments entered Mindanao and mass migration of Christians was encouraged. (Rodil 1985:4).
The American forces eventually arrived under the command of Capt. Wendell C. Neville, who eventually became a Major General, the 14th Commandant of the United States Marine Corps in 1929-1930. He was initially posted as Military Governor of Basilan from 1899 to 1901, and was tasked at the establishment of a civil government for the island of Basilan.
By July 1, 1901, the Municipality of Zamboanga was inaugurated under Public Act No. 135. This constituted Zamboanga and Basilan Island.
On September 15, 1911, the governing body of the Moro Province, the Legislative Council, passed Act. No.272 converting the Municipality of Zamboanga into a city with a Commission form of government. The ceremony was held on January 1, 1912 with the appointment of American Christopher F. Bader as the first City Mayor. With the island of Basilan as part of Zamboanga, this made the City of Zamboanga the biggest city in the world in terms of land area. Two years later he was succeeded by Victoriano Tarrosas the first Filipino Zamboangueño Mayor of the city when Bader resigned.
The Department of Mindanao and Sulu replaced the Moro Province in 1914, and its districts broken up into separate provinces, namely: Davao, Misamis, Lanao, Cotabato, Sulu, and Zamboanga, the city was then reverted to its original status as a municipality administered by a Municipal President and several Councilors. The municipality included the whole of Basilan Island and it remained as the capital of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu, with a civil government under an American civil governor, from 1913 up to 1920.
The Department of Mindanao and Sulu under Gov. Frank W. Carpenter was created by Philippine Commission Act 2309 (1914) and ended on February 5, 1920 by Act of Philippine Legislature No. 2878. The Bureau of Non-Christian Tribes was organized and briefly headed by Teofisto Guingona, Sr. With the enactment by the US Congress of the Jones Law (Philippine Autonomy Law) in 1916, ultimate Philippine independence was guaranteed and the Filipinization of public administration began.
Datu Kalun died in Basilan on 16 July 1904 at the age of 58, soon after his first contact with the Americans. His nephew Gabino Pamaran became his successor and adopted the name Datu Mursalun. Mursalun, also pro-American, led the town of Lamitan which became an American model of civil government and development. Mursalun worked for the material progress of Basilan, and sought ways to fight banditry and piracy in the area.
[edit] Philippine Commonwealth
Politically, Basilan became a part of the Moro Province (1899-1914, encompassing most of Mindanao Island). Basilan was then included in the Department of Mindanao and Sulu (1914-1920), a district of Zamboanga Province (1920-1936), and then of the Chartered City of Zamboanga (1936-1948), before it became a Chartered City on its own right at the beginning of the Philippine Republic.
Alongside military suppression came a policy of education. Public schools were built but Muslim enrollment was way below Christian school attendance. Muslims considered public education a threat to their culture and religion.
To ensure Muslim participation in government affairs, the Americans soon adopted a Policy of Attraction for western Mindanao. Moreover, the Philippine Constabulary (PC) replaced the United States Army units pursuant to colonial efforts to reduce American presence. The replacement of American troops, mostly by Christians under the PC, increased the hostility between Muslims and Christians.
In the political sphere, the management of Muslim affairs through the organization of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu in 1914 was unsuccessful, as leadership in the department fell in the hands of Christians. Thus, the Muslim leaders were historically opposed to the idea of independence, which meant the incorporation of Muslim areas into a political system dominated by Christians.
Early in the American period, American plantation owners cleared vast expanses of Basilan's virgin forest land and established what was to be Basilan's primary economic activity - plantation agriculture, mainly rubber and copra. American Dr. James D. W. Strong, the Father of the Philippine Rubber Industry, inaugurated the first rubber plantation in the Philippines (inauguration was attended by President Manuel L. Quezon no-less) in Baluno, a plaque and shrine to this pioneering individual may be visited in the same Barangay to this day.
The success of what was soon to be the B. F. Goodrich rubber concession in the northern part of Isabela City, enticed other multi-national firms, such as the British-Malaysian Sime Darby and the Hispano-German Hans Menzi Corporation to open rubber plantations in the City's southern areas. The first Filipino-owned plantation was established on Malamawi Island by Don Juan S. Alano, originally of Malolos, Bulacan, who served as Representative of the entire Moro Province (Mindanao) during the Commonwealth Era (1936-1942), and the first Congressman of Zamboanga Province (now comprising Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga City and Basilan) in the Republic's first Congress (1946-1949). He authored the Charter of both the Cities of Basilan and Zamboanga.
More Filipino settler families, such as the Cuevas-Flores-Pamaran-Antonio clan (progeny of the legendary Datu Kalun) in Lamitan and the Pardo, Barandino, Brown, Dans and Nuñal families of Isabela itself soon followed suit, establishing sizeable plantations, usually engaged in coconut/copra production.
[edit] Japanese Invasion
The outbreak of World War II disrupted Commonwealth administration. In 1942 Japanese soldiers landed in Basilan and occupied it until 1945.
Christians and Muslim officers and men of the military district in Mindanao and Sulu shifted to the Moro guerilla activities against the Japanese. A civil government called Free Sulu Government administered activities in the locality. At that time, Elpidio Sta. Elena was the municipal president in Isabela, Monico E. Luna was Treasurer, Joe Borja the Chief of Police, and R.C. Climaco was Justice of the Peace. They conducted the affairs of the local government from Fort Isabella Segunda throughout the duration of the war. Behind the Fort, overlooking Aguada River and the water fountain serving hundreds of homes, there was a large pit - used by the Japanese soldiers to bury Filipino and American casualties, usually beheaded with the sword! (from Cawa-Cawa Smorgasbord, by R C Climaco)
The Japanese Occupation forces established a government in Basilan to govern both Zamboanga and Basilan. The Japanese Occupation of Basilan was rather uneventful, however, it barely affected the residents, except in terms of Japanese demand for food for their military machinery. In fact, Datu Mursalun and his family watched, without much interest, the American bombings of the Spanish fort and naval hospital in Isabela which signaled the retaking of Basilan by joint Filipino and American troops in 1945.
[edit] Liberation
On 10 March 1945, the U.S. Eighth Army under Lt. Gen. Robert L. Eichelberger was formally ordered by Gen. Douglas MacArthur to clear the rest of Mindanao was supported by the Filipino soldiers and guerilla fighters, with the start of Operation VICTOR V, with expectations that the campaign would take four months. Eichelberger had misgivings about the projected timetable for the operation, but nonetheless, his Eighth Army staffers came up with a more effective plan.
On the same day Eichelberger's forces were ordered to invade Mindanao, remnants of Maj. Gen. Jens A. Doe's 41st Infantry Division carried out Operation VICTOR IV, the seizure of Zamboanga, which was concurrent with the recapture of Palawan, dubbed Operation VICTOR III. A sizable force, numbering about 9,000 men of the 54th Japanese Independent Mixed Brigade (IMB), had established strong defensive positions around Zamboanga City at the southern tip of the peninsula.
The slow construction of the airfield at Palawan posed a problem for tactical air support augmenting the Zamboanga operation. The seizure of a makeshift airstrip at Dipolog, about 145 miles (230 km) to the northeast of Zamboanga City, the Americans rapidly exploited the opportunity, airlifting two reinforced companies from the 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Division to ensure control of the airstrip. Soon thereafter, Marine Aircraft Groups Zamboanga (MAGSZAM) under Col. Clayton C. Jerome was flying sorties off the airstrip to cover naval bombardment and landing preparations off Zamboanga City.
After bombings of the landing areas by the 13th Air Force and a three-day bombardment by the U.S. Navy, the 162nd and 163rd Infantry Regiments landed three miles (5 km) west of Zamboanga City. Japanese opposition to the landings were minimal, and the 41st Division troops quickly captured the city, which was decimated by the pre-invasion bombardments. The next day, 11 March, the Americans and the Filipinos encountered strong resistance when they attacked Japanese positions in the hills, overlooking the coastal plain. For two weeks, U.S. infantry, ably supported by Marine aviation and naval gunfire together with the Philippine Commonwealth Army forces, fought the Japanese along a five-mile (8 km) front, in terrain so rugged that tanks could not be used, and in positions heavily fortified with deep earthen emplacements, barbed wire, minefields, and booby traps.
On 23 March, after heavy fighting, the center of the Japanese line finally broke, and in the next three days, the 162nd Infantry continued eliminating resistance in the central sector. The 186th Infantry, replacing the 163rd, continued the attack and the 54th Japanese IMB was forced to pull out a week later, harried by the Philippine Commonwealth troops & guerrilla units, retreating through the peninsula and into the jungle. After some time, mopping up operations resulted in 220 Americans and 460 Filipinos killed compared with 6,400 Japanese dead.
Alongside the Zamboanga operation, smaller units of the Military Forces of the Philippine Commonwealth and the Soldiers of the U.S. 41st Division invaded the Sulu Archipelago, a long stretch of islands reaching from the Zamboanga Peninsula to North Borneo. Rapidly taken in succession were Basilan, Malamawi, Tawi-Tawi, Sanga Sanga and Bongao. It is during this phase of the operations when American bombing raids completely destroyed Fort Isabela Segunda, which was used by the Japanese as military headquarters, prison and munitions dump, and razed the "Spanish" Naval Hospital. Minimal resistance from entrenched Japanese positions in Isabela and Malamawi Island brought about a quick reoccupation which was completed by the beginning of April. On 9 April, strong resistance at Jolo was encountered. Anchoring their stubborn defense around Mount Dabo, some 3,900 Japanese troops held off the U.S. 163rd Infantry supported by Filipino soldiers and other local Moro guerrillas. By 22 April, the Allies took the position after hard fighting and the rest of the troops fled and held out in the west for another two months. The 163rd suffered 40 dead and 125 wounded by mid-June, 1945, while some 2,000 Japanese perished.
[edit] Philippine Republic
When the town of Zamboanga became a chartered city in 1936, it included Basilan. On July 1, 1948, by virtue of a bill filed by then Congressman Juan S. Alano, Basilan itself became a separate city after Republic Act. No. 288 was passed by the 1st Philippine Congress. The first city mayor was Nicasio S. Valderroza appointed by President Elpidio Quirino.
Mayor Nicasio S. Valderroza was considered a builder of cities, having been variously a Provincial Treasurer, an acting Provincial Governor of the old Province of Zamboanga, Mayor of Baguio City, first Mayor of Zamboanga City, First Mayor of Davao City and the first appointed Mayor of the new City of Basilan.
When President Ramon Magsaysay became the Chief Executive of the land in 1954, he appointed Leroy S. Brown as mayor of Basilan City. He served as the second and the last appointive mayor of this city until December 31, 1955. The city was then classified as a first class city.
With the approval of Republic Act. No. 1211 amending the charter of the City of Basilan, the position of the City Mayor became elective.
The first election for local officials in Basilan was held in November 8, 1955. Mayor Brown was overwhelmingly elected as the first elective mayor of the city. He was responsible for the construction of several concrete bridges, notably the Aguada Bridge and the impressive Balagtasan Bridge in Lamitan, as well as the construction of a number of public buildings, the expansion of the Isabela wharf, and many more, all of which greatly benefited the people of Basilan.
He was the first and the last elected city executive of Basilan. He served uninterrupted from January 1954 to December 31, 1975, under the Administrations of Presidents Carlos Garcia, Diosdado Macapagal and Ferdinand Marcos. During his term, the city council gave birth to a new breed of legislators and leaders from 1954 to 1975. These years have since been called Basilan's "Golden Years".
Moreover, Mayor Brown was a stalwart member of the Philippines' oldest political party - the Nacionalista Party (NP) - having been elevated to the 7-man Ruling Junta of the NP until the party's suppression by former NP-party-man-turned-nemesis Ferdinand Marcos' Martial Law government.
[edit] City of Basilan
- Mayor NICASIO S. VALDERROZA (Appointed, 1948-1953)
Mayor : Nicasio S. Valderroza
Councilors :
1. Filoteo Dianala Jo, Chairman of the City Council
2. Rupino Diaz
3. Pedro Cuevas Jr.
4. Teofilo Saavedra
5. Jose Pamaran
6. Marcelino Navarro
7. Leroy S. Brown
- Mayor LEROY S. BROWN, 1st Term (Appointed, 1954-1955)
Mayor : Leroy S. Brown
Vice Mayor : Exequiel Dayot, Sr.
Councilors :
1. Pedro Fernandez
2. Jaabil Abdulaup
3. Rupino Diaz
4. Pedro Cuevas Jr.
5. Teofilo Saavedra
6. Jose Pamaran
7. Marcellano Navarro
- Mayor LEROY S. BROWN, 2nd Term (Elected, 1955-1959)
Mayor : Leroy S. Brown
Vice Mayor : Jose Legaspi
Councilors :
1. Pedro Pamaran
2. Jaabil Abdulaup
3. Exequiel Dayot, Jr.
4. Carlos Valdez
5. Effanio Anoos
6. Segundino Mariano
7. Jose Segundo Martinez
8. Pedro Fernandez
- Mayor LEROY S. BROWN, 3rd Term (1959-1963)
Mayor : Leroy S. Brown
Vice Mayor : Exequiel Dayot, Sr.
Councilors :
1. Jose Legaspi
2. Asan Camlian
3. Mohammad Edris
4. Purificacion Arquiza
5. Atty. Ricardo G. Mon
6. Loyola Gadayan
7. Jesus Tabilon
8. Pedro Pamaran
- Mayor LEROY S. BROWN, 4th Term (1963-1967)
Mayor : Leroy S. Brown
Vice Mayor : Exequiel Dayot Sr.
Councilors :
1. Purificacion Arquiza
2. Atty. Ricardo G. Mon
3. Mohammad Edris
4. Asan G. Camlian
5. Loyola Gadayan
6. Cirilo Garcia
7. Jose Legaspi
8. Elegio Yabyabin
- Mayor LEROY S. BROWN, 5th Term (1967-1971)
Mayor : Leroy S. Brown
Vice Mayor :Exequiel Dayot Jr.
Councilors :
1. Purificacion Arquiza
2. Ricardo G. Mon
3. Asan G.Camlian
4. Jose legaspi
5. Wilfredo Furigay
6. Jesus Tabilon
7. Mohammad Edris
8. Boy Garcia
- Mayor LEROY S. BROWN, 6th Term (1971-1975)
Mayor : Leroy S. Brown
Vice Mayor : Pedro Pamaran
Councilors :
1. Asan G. Camlian
2. Ulbert Ulama Tugung
3. Cecilio Martin
4. Boy Garcia
5. Wilfredo Furigay
6. Purificacion Arquiza
7. Ricardo G. Mon
8. Ramon Barandino
[edit] Martial Law Years
On December 21, 1972 President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared Martial Law. At that time, Basilan was in the middle of the Moro National Liberation Front Uprising prompted by the expose of the Jabidah Massacre on March 18, 1968. A number of native Moro leaders joined the MNLF rebellion, making Basilan a veritable warzone. The first-ever armed confrontation occurred around the heavily forested hills of Bagbagon and Canibungan in Lantawan on the island's western area. This was followed by the occupation of the Alano Plantation (declared "No Man's Land" by the military) by MNLF "munduhin" and "blackshirts" and the ensuing aerial bombardment by the military which left the plantation totally devastated. MNLF rebels then laid siege over Lamitan's poblacion, but was eventually staved off by fierce resistance from Lamitan residents who volunteered to fight valiantly beside elements of the Armed Forces and the Philippine Constabulary.
Several more raids and ambushes were made throughout the island, which succeeded in stopping all the operations of the plantations. Sporadic gun-battles, too, broke out within Isabela's poblacion, and pirate raids harried fishing operations as well as passenger ferry traffic between Basilan and Zamboanga.
After more than two years of incessant fighting, a substantial number among Basilan's Christian populace left the place altogether reducing the Christian tribes to minority status once again. After nearly 50 years of continuous immigration from Zamboanga, the Visayas and Luzon, Basilan experienced, for the very first time, a net outflow of people.
On December 27, 1973, President Marcos issued Presidential Decree No. 356, converting the City of Basilan into the Province of Basilan "to provide the close government attention and for the purpose of spurring its growth". Another Presidential Decree numbered 593 dated December 2, 1974, amended P.D. 356. The law not only defines the City's territory but also provided that the capital of Basilan shall be the Municipality of Isabela. It also created ten (10) Municipalities to comprise the new Province of Basilan.
Presidential Decree No. 593 was later amended by Presidential Decree No. 840 dated December 11, 1975, reducing the number of municipalities to seven (7) in order to render its " territorial portion more complementary to the size of the area and more responsive to pacification, rehabilitation and total development of the province". The municipalities specified in the said amendment were the following: Isabela, Lamitan, Tuburan, Tipo-Tipo, Sumisip, Maluso and Lantawan, of which five (5) municipalities are now in existence. It also provided for the absorption of the territorial jurisdiction of the City of Basilan into the Municipality of Isabela with its poblacion as the capital seat of the province.
The conversion to Province-hood, and the creation of Municipalities ensured that Basilan's sparsely populated areas were "given" to Muslim warlords and surrendering MNLF Commanders by Presidential fiat, as a form of bounty or reward for laying down their arms. The once-progressive First-Class City of Basilan was emasculated beyond recognition, having been reduced to an area exactly One-Kilometer radius within the Isabela Poblacion.
Under Martial Law, Basilan had its first military governor in the person of Col. Tomas G. Nanquil, Jr., then the Brigade Commander of 24th Infantry Brigade stationed in Basilan. There were three (3) Vice-governors during his tenure as military governor. Col. Nanquil served for about a year and half.
Before Basilan was converted to a province, it had three regular municipalities, Isabela, Lamitan, and Maluso which are districts of the city of Basilan. Even when Col. Nanquil was appointed Military Governor, the city of Basilan was still functioning under Mayor Brown until December 31, 1975 due to its territorial boundary dispute with the Province of Basilan.
The second military Governor was Rear Admiral Romulo M. Espaldon. Due to his numerous functions and responsibilities as Commanding General of the Armed Forces of the Philippines' Southern Command (SouthCom), South Sulu Sea Frontiers Command, over all military supervisor of Mindanao, Deputy Chief of Staff of the AFP and Regional Commissioner for Islamic Affairs in Region IX, Adm. Espaldon could not possibly attend to his duties as Military Governor of Basilan. To this effect, he designated Col. Florencio Magsino, Brigade Commander of the 21st Infantry Brigade as Military Supervisor for Basilan and Officer-In-Charge. His Deputy Brigade Commander Col. Recaredo Calvo ably assisted Col. Magsino. When Col. Magsino was appointed Superintendent of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) in Baguio City and Col. Calvo was recalled to Headquarters, Col. Alfredo Rillera assumed command of the Brigade and became the Military Supervisor of Basilan. He was succeeded by Col. Salvador Mison. Col. Augusto Narag, Jr., later replaced him. The last military Supervisor was Gen. Rodolfo Tolentino, consequently, the first military with a star rank to be appointed Military Supervisor in Basilan. Admiral Espaldon was the last military governor of the province, his term lasted until December 31, 1975.
On December 11, 1975, President Marcos appointed then Vice-Governor for Administration Asan G. Camlian, a thrice-elected City Councilor.
Together with Gov. Asan G. Camlian, the first mayors of the seven municipalities were also appointed they were: Ricardo G. Mon, Isabela; Pedro C. Pamaran, Lamitan; Jean S. Yasin, Maluso; Herman H. Hatalan, Sumisip; Muhtamad S. Akbar, Lantawan, Candu I. Muarip, Tuburan; and Abduca Osani, Tipo-Tipo.
In the local elections held on January 30, 1980, and running under the banner of Marcos-led Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL or New Society Movement), a huge majority elected Gov. Camlian. He served for ten (10) years (1976-1986).
The first representative of the Federation of the ABC in the SP was Yusan A. Ismael while Sahak Habil represented the KB after Nasser Mustafa.
The representative of the Province in the Batasang Pambansa was Kalbi T. Tupay, a former MNLF Commander who was among the first to return to the folds of the law. In the second election after martial law, however, he lost to a native son of Basilan, Candu I. Muarip, the first and last Yakan to serve as Assemblyman in the Batasang Pambansa until its abolition in 1986; the first and only Basileno to get a Cabinet Portfolio when he served as Secretary of the Office of Muslim Affairs and Cultural Communities (OMACC) from 1986-1987 under the Administration of Corazon C. Aquino; and the first Yakan Congressman to represent Basilan Province in the House of Representatives (1995-1998).
In 1984, Basilan had three (3) representatives in the Autonomous Government of Region IX; namely; Ulbert Ulama Tugung, Chairman, LTP, Sagga H. Ismael and Hudan Abubakar.
Elnorita Pamaran Tugung widow of assassinated LTP Chairman Ulbert Ulama Tugung became Chairman of the Lupong Tagapagpaganap ng Pook and later represented Basilan in the House of Representatives (1992-1995) after the term of Cong. Alvin G. Dans who served from 1987-1992.
[edit] Province of Basilan
The composition of the appointed Martial Law Military Administration were the following:
- MILITARY ADMINISTRATION (Appointed, 1974-1975)
1st Military Governor : Col. Tomas Nanquil Jr.
2nd Military Governor : Rear Adm. Romulo Espaldon
Military Supervisors under Rear Adm. Romulo Espaldon :
Col. Florencio Magsino
Col. Alfredo Rillera
Col. Salvador Mison
Col. Augusto Narag, Jr.
Gen. Rodolfo Tolentino
Provincial Board:
Vice Governor for Administration : Asan Camlian
Vice-Governor for Peace and Order : Kalbi i. Tupay
Vice-Governor for Development : Mohammad P. Edris
Provincial Board Members :
1. Pedro C. Cuevas
2. Ulbert Ulama Tugung
3. Jean S. Yasin
4. Mario M. Mamang
5. Pio B. Dumadaug
6. Romulo Lopez
The composition of the first Provincial Administration under a civilian governor were:
- Gov. ASAN G. CAMLIAN, 1st Term (Appointed, 1975-1980)
Governor : Asan G. Camlian
Vice Governor : Pedro Pamaran
Provincial Board Members
1. Mario M. Mamang
2. Sagga H. Ismael
3. Avelino K. Ilimin
4. Roberto A. Anoos
5. Kalbi I. Tupay
6. Lahe M. Atalad
7. Inoy D. Osamad
8. Ricardo N. Nualia
9. Pio B. Dumadaug
10. Aurea B. Maulod
The first elected Provincial Officials were:
- Gov. ASAN G. CAMLIAN, 2nd Term (Elected, 1980-1986)
Governor : Asan G. Camlian
Vice Governor : Pedro Pamaran
Provincial Board Members
1. Atty. Antonio S. Alano
2. Roberto Anoos
3. Mario M. Mamang
4. Inoy D. Osamad
5. Lahe Atalad
6. Isabel K. Gahapon
7. Muhammadnur Hassan, ABC
8. Nasser Mustafa, KB
[edit] People power
The Snap Presidential Election of February 7, 1986, followed by the famous and historic EDSA People Power Revolution toppled President Marcos and installed President Aquino to power. The Batasang Pambansa was abolished and all local officials were replaced. President Aquino appointed Louis W. Alano, grandson of Cong. Juan S. Alano, and Basilan's Lead Convenor of the Concerned Citizens' Aggrupation (CCA) founded by the late Zamboanga City Mayor, and staunch Marcos Oppositionist, Cesar C. Climaco, as interim governor of Basilan together with Vice-Governor Ping A. Kasim, the members of the Provincial Board, the mayors of the seven municipalities and all municipal councilors in the province. This is preparatory to the local election in 1988.
Prior to the appointment of Gov. Alano, the Department of Interior and Local Government installed government Operations Officer Pepito Pamolana as Officer-In-Charge of the province, through it lasted for only 2 hours. When the local officials filed their candidacy for the 1988 elections, Poe Reynera and Hji. Calama Ibama served as Governor and Vice-Governor respectively. The Board Members appointed with them were: Isidro A. Sta. Elena, Abdulgani Ismael, Ust. Abdulla Baja, Hassan Hajiri, Mario Cabanlit and Romeo Belocura.
The Provincial Officials under Gov. Alano were:
- PEOPLE POWER REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT (Appointed, 1986-1988)
Governor : Louis W. Alano
Vice Governor : Ping A. Kasim
Provincial Board Members
1. Abdulgapor Abubakar
2. Harisul T. Samanul
3. Miskuddin Tupay
4. Abdurahman U. Sahi
5. Antonio Enriquez
6. Cecilio Martin
7. Muhammadnur Hassan, ABC
8. Yusoph Sali, Youth
Gov. Abdulgani "Gerry" Salapuddin won the elections on February 2, 1988. He was the first Provincial Governor from the Yakan tribe and served for three consecutive terms, from 1988-1998.
The Administration of Gov. Salapuddin started the re-construction of the Provincial Capitol Building (burned on June 6, 1993), supported trade missions to neighboring countries, established joint peace and order development councils, improved and rehabilitated major road networks, offered medical and financial assistance to the needy, loan assistance and livelihood program to new entrepreneurs and cooperatives, employees amelioration and welfare.
He likewise served as representative of the Lone District of Basilan in the House of Representatives, for three consecutive terms, during his second term, he became the First Yakan representative to become Deputy Speaker for Mindanao in the Philippine Congress' Lower House during the 12th Congress, he was returned as Deputy Speaker for Mindanao on his third and last term as Representative in the 13th Congress.
[edit] The Rise of the Abu Sayyaf
In the decades following the establishment of Basilan City, the island's interior was effectively secured from attacks of all kinds by the multi-national plantations and its complement of well-equipped security personnel. This, plus the centralization of authority in Isabela, assured a steady and uninterrupted development of Basilan's countryside.
In the early part of the 1990s, however, the government's implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) brought widespread confusion and severely affected Basilan's traditional plantation agriculture economy. The withdrawal of the multi-national plantations was quickly followed by the decommissioning of their respective security contingents. The Christian-Tausug communities within the plantations were left out on their own, ripe for an attack from their traditionally hostile Yakan neighbors previously held at bay by the presence of security forces paid for by the plantations. Basilan's Christian-Tausug plantation communities had to fend for themselves, depending on agrarian reform cooperatives with limited resources to quell any serious threat on their newly-acquired properties.
This threat did not take long in making itself known. The establishment of a group of young, Syrian-, Afghan- and Libyan-trained Filipino mujahideen - the Al-Harakatul Al-Islamiyah, better known as the bandit group Abu Sayyaf - founded by Yakan firebrand Abdurajak Janjalani, a Yakan-Ilonggo, and a preacher-classmate from Syria and Afghanistan, Wahab Akbar, soon catapulted Basilan to international notoriety as a haven for terrorists.
This band of brigands stormed Ipil town in Zamboanga Sibugay Province in April 1995 and planted a bomb on American Library ship M/V Doulos, docked in Zamboanga's port. On the same year, Janjalani's younger brother, Khadaffy, escaped from a Manila prison. From then on, Abdurajak was said to be grooming his brother to be his successor, to the consternation of his co-founder Wahab Akbar. The split between the two happened sometime in 1996, and Akbar quickly chose another route to power. Promising to rat on his former colleagues, and thus offer a windfall of reward money and rank promotions for his sponsors, Akbar was propped up by the military all the way to the governorship of the Province by May 1998.
Six months after Akbar was sworn in as Governor, on December 18, 1998, Abdurajak Janjalani was eventually tracked down and killed in a Lamitan hideout. The group then went into hiding as Khadaffy, Janjalani's anointed heir-apparent, consolidated his control over the many different groups that now compose the Abu Sayyaf. Assisted by Abu Sabaya in Basilan and Commander Robot in Sulu, both of whom are Tausug, Khadaffy soon revived the group - this time receiving hefty funding from international terror networks Al Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah.
They then engineered a series of arguably successful kidnap-for-ransom operations which reached its fever point in 2000 and 2001, when high profile hostages from Malaysia's resort island of Sipadan and then tourists from a Palawan resort were kidnapped and brought to Basilan and Sulu. This episode saw the killing of American Muslim Jeffrey Schilling and Christian Missionary Martin Burnham. His wife, Gracia Burnham, was eventually rescued. The town proper of Lamitan was likewise attacked by the group, briefly occupying the Jose Ma. Torres Hospital and the St. Peter Parish, and then escaping a supposedly tight military-police dragnet under a cloud of accusations and allegations of payments and collusion on the part of military officials and their Abu Sayyaf counterparts.
For a time, the entire Basilan island was blockaded off by Philippine Navy ships, in an effort to contain the group, and prevent any further traffic between Zamboanga, Basilan and the rest of the Sulu Archipelago. This, too, however, proved futile.
This prompted the government, assisted by the United States under President George W. Bush, to inaugurate the Balikatan 02-1 in 2002, wherein a contingent of about 3,000 US troops were deployed to Basilan to offer training and technical assistance to the Philippine Armed Forces, as well as humanitarian services to the general populace.
This then led to an avalanche of NGOs and ODA-funded projects which transformed Basilan from the Philippines' "Wild, Wild West" to a showcase for US/foreign-assisted efforts in former terrorist hotbeds, dubbed the "Basilan Model". ODA-funded initiatives from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, EU, UK, Belgium, Japan, Germany and Spain complemented the larger US presence in the area.
To date, the Abu Sayyaf, has continued on its kidnapping rampage, killing off 14 personnel of the Philippine Marines in an ambush on July 11, 2007. It has likewise carried out several high-profile kidnappings, all of which were on Sulu island, including ABSCBN Reporter Ces Drilon (June 8, 2008), GMA7's Susan Enriquez (April 2000) and Carlo Lorenzo (September 2002), controversial reporter Arlyn dela Cruz (January 2002, believed to have had a "special relationship" with Khadaffy), as well as a number of foreign journalists from Germany (Der Spiegel), France, Australia and Denmark. Its latest exploit is the kidnapping of 3 high-level staff workers of the International Committee of the Red Cross or ICRC (1 Filipino, 1 Swiss and 1 Italian), also in Sulu.
In July 2004, Gracia Burnham testified at a trial of eight Abu Sayyaf member and identified six out of the suspects as being her erstwhile captors, including Alhamzer Limbong alias Kosovo, Abdul Azan Diamla, Abu Khari Moctar, Bas Ishmael, Alzen Jandul and Dazid Baize.
"The eight suspects sat silently during her three-hour testimony, separated from her by a wooden grill. They face the death sentence if found guilty of kidnapping for ransom. The trial began this year and is not expected to end for several months."[8]
Alhamzer Limbong was later killed in a prison uprising.[9]
Gracia Burnham has caused controversy since returning to the US, by claiming that Philippine military officials were colluding with her captors. She made the claim in a book about her experiences called In the Presence of My Enemies. In it she complains the Armed Forces of the Philippines "didn't pursue us ... "As time went on, we noticed that they never pursued us."
The Provincial Officials from 1988-1998 were:
- Gov. GERRY A. SALAPUDDIN, 1st Term (Elected, 1988-1992)
Governor : Gerry A. Salapuddin
Vice Governor: Ping A. Kasim, P.O. pro tempore
Provincial Board Members
1. Hunasil A. Asmawil
2. Mario M. Mamang
3. Ahmad U. Puyo
4. Abdulgapor A. Abubakar
5. Adam A. Musa, SK
6. Andriel B. Asalul, ABC
- Gov. GERRY A. SALAPUDDIN, 2nd Term (1992-1995)
Governor : Gerry A. Salapuddin
Vice Governor : Ping A. Kasim
Provincial Board Members
1. Mario M. Mamang
2. Nato Asmawil
3. Eddie Otoh Fernandez
4. Perfecto C. Antonio
5. Susan B. Yu
6. Alexander V. Estabillo
7. Miskuddin S. Tupay
8. Nasser A. Edris, ABC
9. Nasser A. Salain, SK
- Gov. GERRY A. SALAPUDDIN, 3rd Term (1995-1998)
Governor : Gerry A. Salapuddin
Vice Governor : Ping A. Kasim
Provincial Board Members
1ST DISTRICT BOARD MEMBER
1. Susan B. Yu
2. Sakiran Hajan
3. Miskuddin S. Tupay
2ND DISTRICT BOARD MEMBER
4. Andriel B. Asalul
5. Mohammad B. Abdullah
6. Bonnie C. Balamo
7. Alih Salih, ABC
8. Alton T. Angeles, Councilors' League
9. Nasser A. Salain, SK
[edit] Days of Dynasty
Republic Act. 7160 known as the Local Government Code of 1992 gave the Vice-Governor the power to become the Presiding Officer of the Sanggunian Panlalawigan, thereby separating the Executive function of the Governor and Legislative power of the Provincial Board headed by the Vice-Governor.
Vice Governor Ping A. Kasim served uninterrupted from 1986-1998. Otoh Fernandez, Perfecto C. Antonio, Jr., Andriel B. Asalul, and Nato Asmawil were the longest serving members of the board.
Former Congressman Alvin G. Dans served for two (2) months as Governor in the later part of 1996 after the Commission on Elections declared him the winner in the gubernatorial race of 1992.
Another interim governor, former Vice Governor Ping A. Kasim served for three (3) months as Chief Executive. He served in this capacity from April to June 1998.
Gov. Wahab M. Akbar assumed office on July 1, 1998. His first term was highlighted by his close affiliation with President Joseph Estrada, he switched sides during the 2001 EDSA DOS People Power which booted Pres. Estrada and installed President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in power. During Akbar's administration various projects for Communication and Health Services, the Full implementation of the Salary Standardization Law, Infrastructure Projects, Food Security Programs and Peace and Order Programs in the province were made. The re-construction of the Provincial Capitol was likewise completed during his term.
Recent developments brought about by the inclusion of Basilan into the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao(ARMM)increased the number of Basilan's Municipalities to eleven (11), namely the original: Maluso, Lantawan, Sumisip, Tipo-Tipo, Tuburan, and the ARMM-created Al-Barka, Akbar, Muhammad Ajul, Ungkaya Pukan, Hdji. Muhtamad and Tabuan Lasa, municipalities with an average of only 10 Barangays each and populations that increduously grew by an average 100% over the period of only seven years.
Case in point is the eponymous Akbar Municipality (named after the late Congressman Wahab Akbar, during his lifetime), which used to have a population of only 10,581 in 9 barangays in 2000, to 21,312 in 2007, or an actual population increase of 101.42%.
On April 25, 2001, by virtue of Republic Act. No. 9023, sponsored by Dep. Speaker Gerry Salapuddin, the people of Isabela, through a plebiscite, overwhelmingly ratified the conversion of the Capital Town of Isabela into a Component City.
[edit] Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
Then on August 14, 2001, the people in a majority of the Six Municipalities comprising Basilan Province (except Isabela City and Lamitan) opted to join the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in a plebiscite expanding the territory of the Autonomous Region. All of Basilan's six Municipalities therefore have now been enrolled as a part of the expanded ARMM (excluding the City of Isabela).
In the ARMM election of November 26, 2001, Rajam Akbar, Hatimil Hassan, Harisul T. Samanul won as Assemblymen representing the province in the ARMM Regional Assembly.
Results from the recent 2007 Local Elections had the COMELEC declaring former Governor Wahab Akbar, an acknowledged Yakan leader, as Congressman of the Lone District of Basilan, a position he served until November 14, 2007 when he was killed by a bomb blast at the Philippine Congress grounds. His first wife, Jum Jainuddin-Akbar was proclaimed Governor, and his second wife, Cherrylyn Santos-Akbar, was proclaimed Mayor of Isabela City. Allegations of massive, systematic and comprehensive electoral fraud, vote-buying and voter intimidation were leveled at the Akbar dynasty. Akbar's nephews and nieces also won the chief posts in almost all municipalities. The only exception being Lamitan, having elected a descendant of the feisty Datu Kalun - Roderick C. Furigay, defeating Akbars third wife in the 2007 elections by a landslide.
Former MNLF Commander and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Abdulgani 'Gerry' Salapuddin, along with Akbar foes Hajiman Hataman and his brother, Party-list Representative Mujiv Hataman have been implicated in the bombing incident which killed their political nemesis.
The Provincial Officials from 1998-2007 were:
- Gov. WAHAB M. AKBAR, 1st Term (1998-2001)
Governor : Wahab M. Akbar
Vice Governor : Bonnie C. Balamo
Provincial Board Members
1ST DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS
1. Eddie Otoh Fernandez
2. Susan B. Yu
3. Perfecto C. Antonio Jr.
4. Gregorio V. Dela Pena
2ND DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS
5. Recardo Boga
6. Jubaira Said
7. Hunasil Asmawil
8. Andriel B. Asalul
9. Hussein Francisco, ABC
10. Edwin J. Iklaman, Councilors' League
11. Moumar Muarip, SK
- Gov. WAHAB M. AKBAR, 2nd Term (2001-2004)
Governor : Wahab M. Akbar
Vice Governor : Lukman A. Ampao
Provincial Board Members
1ST DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS
1. Susan B. Yu
2. Eddie Otoh Fernandez
3. Perfecto C. Antonio Jr.
4. Jainal Ajibon
2ND DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS
5. Nasser A. Salain
6. Jubaira S. Said
7. Noel Baul
8. Abdulmuhmin Mujahid
9. Majang Linggisan, ABC
10. Ronnie Hantian, Councilors' League
11. Jhomar Maturan, SK
- Gov. WAHAB M. AKBAR, 3rd Term (2004-2007)
Governor : Wahab M.Akbar
Vice Governor : Al-Rasheed Ahmad Sakkalahul
Provincial Board Members
1ST DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS
1. Eddie Otoh Fernandez
2. Muamar L. Muarip
3. Taib Alejo
4. Placido S. Jilhani
2ND DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS
5. Alton T. Angeles
6. Abdulmuhmin Mujahid
7. Ronnie A. Hantian
8. Jubaira Said
9. Majang Linggisan, ABC
10. Jhomar Maturan, SK
[edit] Representation in the Philippine Congress
The lone Congressional District of Basilan is the representation of the Province of Basilan in the Philippine House of Representatives. Basilan was part of the representation of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu from 1916 to 1935, Zamboanga Province from 1935 to 1953, Zamboanga del Sur from 1953 to 1972 and Region IX from 1978 to 1984.
 | This section is about an event or subject that may not be current but does not specify the time period. Please help improve it to include this information as Wikipedia is viewed by a worldwide audience. You can discuss the issue on the talk page. (August 2009) |
- Population (2007): 496,503
| Period | Representative/Assemblyman | Party-list Representative |
|---|---|---|
| 1984–1986 | | |
| 1987–1992 | | |
| 1992–1995 | | |
| 1995–1998 | | |
| 1998–2001 | | |
| 2001–2004 | ||
| 2004–2007 | ||
| 2007–2010 | | |
